Carrie Elizabeth Romney, the 64-year-old sister-in-law of former U.S. Sen. Mitt Romney, left a suicide note before she fell from the roof of a five-story parking garage in Valencia last fall, according to a report that surfaced this week citing case records from Los Angeles County authorities.
The detail adds to a case the medical examiner ruled a suicide on Dec. 9, 2025, following weeks of review. Romney was found the night of Oct. 10 near the Town Center area north of Los Angeles after a fall that investigators said caused fatal blunt-force injuries. The newly described note was linked to materials recovered from her vehicle, according to summaries reported this week. Officials did not release the note’s contents.
Deputies and paramedics were dispatched around 9 p.m. Oct. 10 to the Valencia Town Center complex after a report of a person down near a garage by a hotel. Romney was pronounced dead at the scene. Investigators documented the roof area and the stairwells, then secured her car for evidence processing. The Los Angeles County Medical Examiner later listed the cause of death as blunt traumatic injuries consistent with a fall and the manner of death as suicide. Case paperwork released in December outlined the basic findings; further references to a handwritten message surfaced in January, according to media accounts that cited county files. Authorities have not alleged foul play.
Romney was married to attorney George “Scott” Romney, Mitt Romney’s older brother. Public records show the couple wed in 2016 and were in divorce proceedings in 2025. Family statements at the time of her death asked for privacy as relatives processed the news. The case drew national attention because of the family’s profile and because initial details were sparse as investigators waited for toxicology and scene reviews before declaring a manner of death.
Documents in the investigation describe a straightforward scene: a five-level public garage serving nearby shops and a hotel, with access points monitored by cameras and security patrols common on weekend nights. Detectives photographed the rooftop parapet, measured distances to the ground and logged personal effects. The car associated with Romney was towed for inventory and later returned to next of kin after forensic processing. Officials said no surveillance footage showed direct contact with other individuals in the minutes before the fall, and there were no indications of an altercation on the roof or in adjacent stairwells.
The case file notes routine steps that follow an apparent suicide in a public place: a coroner investigator response, interviews with security staff, and canvassing for additional camera angles from nearby businesses. Autopsy findings released in December listed blunt-force trauma as the cause, matching the fall scenario. A supplemental entry in January, reflected in media reports this week, referenced a handwritten message recovered with personal items. Authorities did not say when the note was written or to whom it was addressed. They also did not publicly identify all medications collected during evidence processing or provide full toxicology results beyond standard case summaries.
Valencia’s Town Center area includes multi-story parking structures that serve a regional mall and hotel cluster along Magic Mountain Parkway. On weekend evenings, sheriff’s deputies frequently patrol garages as shoppers and hotel guests move between levels. On Oct. 10, witnesses described a perimeter taped off near the garage as investigators worked under floodlights. Traffic along nearby streets slowed briefly while a coroner’s vehicle and sheriff’s units staged at the entrance. By early morning, the scene was cleared and the garage reopened to the public.
Family acquaintances said Romney split time between local commitments and trips to see relatives. Public records list a Valencia address associated with the couple and filings in Los Angeles County family court reflecting divorce proceedings in 2025. Friends described her as private, and news of the death rippled quickly because of Mitt Romney’s national profile as a former presidential nominee and Utah senator. His office issued a brief statement in October acknowledging the loss and requesting privacy.
Officials said the file remains closed as a suicide unless new information emerges. In similar cases, agencies may add supplemental pages if subsequent lab results or property inventories become available, but those do not change the ruling unless they contradict earlier findings. The sheriff’s department said there were no outstanding suspects or persons of interest tied to the October incident at the garage, and no safety advisories were issued for the surrounding area beyond the initial closure during the investigation.
Public records indicate Romney, 64, had adult children from a prior marriage and connections in business and community groups. Memorial arrangements were private. In the weeks after the death, the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner’s office logged final certifications that allowed the release of remains, a step that closed the primary investigative loop ahead of any later document requests by media or the public.
As of Wednesday, officials had not scheduled a briefing regarding the January references to a handwritten note. The county’s online case portal continued to list the death as a suicide with cause specified as blunt traumatic injuries from a fall. Any additional disclosures would likely come through records requests or routine media inquiries to the coroner and sheriff’s offices.
Author note: Last updated January 22, 2026.